The White House fired back this week after dramatic scenes unfolded in Ceuta, a Spanish autonomous city on the North African coast, where thousands of migrants crossed from Morocco in a matter of days, overwhelming Spanish border personnel.
“President Trump has long warned Europe what would happen if they continue to implement far-left, globalist policies, including enabling mass migration,” the White House said in a statement reported by Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin. “Spain and other countries who have adopted this destructive philosophy should immediately reverse course or risk their own demise.”
According to a report, the crisis built rapidly over several days. In the week leading up to the surge, approximately 1,500 people had already reached Ceuta, many by swimming from the Moroccan side. Local leader Juan Jesús Vivas confirmed those numbers before the situation escalated sharply.
By Thursday, Spanish state television TVE was reporting that between 2,000 and 3,000 people had crossed in a single day. Most were described as young men from Morocco who used inflatable inner tubes to navigate around the Tarajal breakwater or crossed on foot through gaps in border fencing.
The strain on personnel was severe. Rachid Sbihi, head of the association representing Civil Guard officers in Ceuta, said the border had “totally collapsed,” describing the scene as “absolute chaos.” National Police and Civil Guard officers reported being “overwhelmed,” with one officer warning they were “one step away from operational collapse.”
Vivas called the situation “a total humanitarian and social emergency” and urged the central government in Madrid to declare a national emergency, deploy the army, and send additional police reinforcements. He also noted that facilities for unaccompanied minors were operating far beyond capacity.
The Spanish Interior Ministry announced it would send military reinforcements, including three platoons of 20 soldiers each, a diving unit, a military vessel, and additional special police units, bringing the total response to roughly 200 personnel. The ministry said it would also work with Moroccan authorities to return those who entered illegally.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said his government was “fully committed to providing an immediate response to the situation in Ceuta,” adding that authorities were “mobilizing all necessary resources, working with Moroccan and international authorities, and preparing the necessary measures to restore normalcy as soon as possible.”
The crisis has put renewed pressure on European border policy and handed fresh ammunition to critics who argue that lenient migration frameworks leave countries exposed to exactly this kind of sudden, large-scale crossing.